Wrench having slidable nut-retaining wedge



Feb. 8, 1955 H. JOHNSON WRENCH HAVING SLIDABLE NUT-RETAINING WEDGE FiledApril 1, 1952 ?llllllllflllllllllllll/// OWN IN V EN TOR.

arromvns United States Patent WRENCH HAVING SLIDABLE NUT-RETAINING WEDGEHenry Johnson, Brooklyn, N. Y.

Application April 1, 1952, Serial No. 279,879

2 Claims. (Cl. 81-125) This invention relates to a hand tool, and moreparticularly to a specific form of socket wrench.

In various industries and repair and assembly organizations there arecertain operations requiring a large number of applications of nuts orsimilar threaded members of the same size to a bolt end or the like.Hitherto magnet socket wrenches have been used to pick up and hold a nutwhile the tool is turned to make the required threaded engagement. Forsome purposes, however, nuts of non-magnetic material are acceptable. Insome special instances where nuts of magnetic material are used, it ishighly desirable that they not be magnetized to any extent, as wouldresult from application with a magnetic wrench.

It is a general purpose of this invention to provide a simple andefiicient form of socket wrench which will satisfy all these purposes.

More specifically it is an object of this invention to provide a handtool of the socket wrench type having wedging means selectively operableto grip and to disengage the side of a nut or the like within the socketmember.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention a socket member is integrallymounted on the end of an elongated shank or rod member having a handleon the other end, and provided with a retaining rod operable by asliding collar on the rod member and having a tapered end extending intothe socket member for engagement with a side of a nut.

In another embodiment the socket member is split and caused to open orclose by movement relative to an operating member having taperedengagement with the split portions of the socket member.

These and other features of the invention will be more fully understoodwhen taken with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a preferred form of the socket wrench;

Fig. 2 is a cross-section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an end view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary partially sectioned side elevation showing therelation of a nut to the socket member;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional elevation similar to Fig. 4 butshowing a different position of the means for holding the nut within thesocket member;

Fig. 6 is a partially sectioned side elevation of a modified form of thesocket wrench;

Fig. 7 is an end view taken on line 77 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary longitudinal section showing the parts of thetool of Fig. 6 in nut holding relation; and

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary elongated section similar to Fig. 8 and showingthe released relation of the nut gripping socket member.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawing, a hand tool in the form of a socketwrench 10 is shown to comprise a head or socket member 12 integrallymounted on one end of a shank or elongated rod member 14 in alignmenttherewith. An enlarged handle 16 is suitably secured to the opposite endof the rod member 14 with a sliding collar 18 mounted on the rod member14 between the head 12 and the handle 16. As shown the sliding collar 18is of a size and shape to permit ready engagement thereof by the fingersof a hand grasping the handle 16.

The sliding collar 18 is held against a lateral projection, in the formof a stop pin 20 passed through an intermediate portion of the rodmember 14, by means of a coil 2,701,494 Patented Feb. 8, 1955 spring 22acting between the adjacent ends of the handle 16 and the collar.

The sliding collar 18 carries a slender retaining rod or strip 24, oneend 26 of which is securely anchored in any suitable manner within thecollar and the other end portion of which is formed with a tapered orwedge shaped end for purposes to be described.

It will be noted in Figs. 3 and 4 that the open ended socket member 12is shaped to receive a polygonal nut N of predetermined size, and that aminor enlargement is made adjacent one nut-engaging face of the socket.This enlargement of the socket opening results from the formation of anopening 30 extending longitudinally through the head 12 for receivingand guiding the retaining rod 24, the tapered end 28 of which enters thesocket space of the head 12 to the position shown.

In operation, when it is desired to pick up a nut for attachment thewedge shaped end 28 of the retaining rod is withdrawn to the positionshown in Fig. 5 by retraction of the collar 18 against the spring 22,and the socket is placed over a nut on a plane surface. Release andadvance of the rod 24 causes the tapered end 28 thereof to wedge betweenthe socket opening and the adjacent side of the nut N so as to retainthe nut in the wrench so that it may be picked up and applied to athreaded bolt or stud. A nut thus retained can be released from thesocket wrench at any time by retraction of the retaining rod 24 in themanner indicated.

In the modified form of the invention shown in Figs. 6 to 9, inclusive,a socket wrench or tool comprises a socket member slit to provideopposed jaws 122, 122 having a spring bias away from each other, asshown in Fig. 9. These jaws 122 are an integral part of thecorresponding end of elongated rod member which is anchored at its otherend in an enlarged handle 160. As before a sliding collar 180 for fingerengagement is mounted on the rod member 140 and urged away from theadjacent end of the handle by an interposed coil spring 220.

lnstead of a rod for controlling the gripping action of the socketmember 120, this modified tool is provided with an elongated sleeve 240sliding on the rod member 140 and having one end anchored or otherwisesecured to the collar 180. The other end of the tubular sleeve 240 isformed with an enlarged end 260 formed to receive the major portion ofthe opposed jaws 122 in tapered, complemental engagement, as shown inFig. 8. Instead of a projection on the shank or rod member, thisembodiment utilizes abutting surfaces 262 and 264 at the inner portionof the enlarged end 260 and the adjacent portions of the jaws 122.

Starting with the tool 100 in the position illustrated in Fig. 9, a nutof shape and size corresponding to the socket defined by the closed jaws122 may be gripped and held by releasing the sliding collar and thuspermitting the spring 220 to urge the enlarged end over the outer sidesof the jaws 122 to bring them together into the gripping position shownin Fig. 8. Release of the nut is accomplished by reverse movement.

The socket, elongated rod member, retaining rod or sleeve, and springmeans will be formed of metals suitable for the purpose, but the handleand sliding collar can be made of plastic, wood or any other materialhaving suitable physical properties.

While the preferred embodiment of this invention and a modificationthereof have been specifically disclosed, it will be understood thatvariations can be made in details of construction and arrangement ofparts without departing from the principles of this invention and thescope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as novel and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A socket wrench comprising a nut-receiving socket member having aclosed end, an elongated rod member extending from the closed end of thesocket member, a handle secured to the extending end of the rod member,a collar slidable on the rod member, said rod member having a projectionbetween the socket and the handle to limit movement of the collar towardthe socket member, spring means acting between the adjacent pornomestions of the handle and the collar to hold the collar against theprojection, and a retaining rod having one end secured in the collar andhaving the other end sliding through the socket member adjacent anut-engaging surface thereof, said other end being tapered to Wedgebetween the side of a nut and the socket member.

2. A hand tool comprising an elongated member having a socket secured onone end and adapted to receive a polygonal nut, a sliding collar on theshank member, a stop projection on the shank member at a position spacedfrom the socket and between the socket and the collar, spring meansurging the collar against the stop projection, and a straight retainingstrip movable with the collar and having a tapered end sliding in thesocket adjacent a lateral nut engaging surface to secure a nut bywedging action When the collar is against the stop projection.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS268,344 Wood Nov. 28, 1882 10 2,320,967 Dunkelberger a- June 1, 19432,438,797 Bagge Mar. 30, 1948 2,566,673 Nygoard Sept. 4, 1951 2,634,461Hodges Apr. 14, 1953

